Adam Hatfield kicked off his 2014 Michelin Clio Cup Series testing programme with the leading SV Racing (SVR) team in fine style at Rockingham Motor Speedway on Thursday (20 February).
The 15-year old from Norwich recently graduated to Clio Cup machinery with the Cheshire-based SVR outfit, having only made his car racing debut in the SAXMAX Junior Touring Car Championship (JTCC) last year following a highly lucrative Karting career.
With expert tutelage from SVR Director, Danny Buxton – himself a former Clio Cup Champion and British Touring Car racer – Hatfield honed his driving technique in both wet and dry conditions over approximately 80 tours of Rockingham’s 1.94mile International Sportscar configuration.
“We got on really well and I think I had a good technique by the end of play at Rockingham,” said an enthused Hatfield. “We had a bit of everything as far as the weather and track conditions are concerned and, while I’ve never been on a test day due to my age or driven Rockingham Motor Speedway before, I managed more than 80 laps and feel far more confident in the car and my own ability.
“The chief objective was to learn the car and work on braking, balancing the throttle and accelerating out of the corners. I’ve learned that you have to be a lot more gentle and smooth on the controls with the race-spec Clio and the speed you carry through the corners on slick tyres takes some getting used to as well, particularly when they’re cool. I’m looking forward to heading somewhere more familiar so I can get a proper reference on my progress.”
Despite his age and inexperience, Hatfield demonstrated maturity and confidence and showed a great turn of speed that left SVR flabbergasted and genuinely excited about what the future holds for the young Norfolk-based racer.
“Adam did a brilliant job, as he didn’t put a foot wrong and did everything I asked of him,” said SVR Director, Buxton. “He far exceeded my expectations, taking it nice and slowly during the morning before really putting the hammer down after lunch – I’m a good passenger, but I had to really tighten the belts! His technique was very impressive considering he’s relatively inexperienced and he’s going to star in 2015 if we manage the planned full year of testing.
“He did approximately 35 laps in damp conditions during the morning and this really helped him settle, also giving him respect for the car. This stood him in good stead for the rest of the day, as it taught him to be gentle with the car. It’s still very early days in his testing programme and, while he still needs to work on synchronising his braking and gear changes, the speed will naturally improve. He went a lot faster than I expected, filling me with confidence at the same time. What a star!”
For more information on SV Racing, please visit the new www.svracing.co.ukwebsite, ‘like the team’s Facebook page or follow @SV_Racing on Twitter.